Cardiovascular Area

Left ventricle reshaping

Our hearth’s shape is similar to a triangle. But when one or more heart attacks occur, it is likely that the heart muscles dilates modifying its original shape into a globular one. As a consequence, it progressively loses its contractile function and, at worst, patients may suffer from cardiac decompensation being the heart unable to maintain adequate cellular perfusion in all parts of the body. Within Fondazione Poliambulanza’s Cardiac Surgery ward, a Decompensation Surgery Unit has been taking an active part in sophisticated operations of ventricle reshaping, aiming at restoring heart’s original shape and functionality as well as its fibres’ disposition, and excluding at the same time those inoperative heart’s sections because of the heart attack.

Even though the reshaping in some cases could be a real alternative to transplant for patients on waiting list, such a surgical technique remains rather unexplored.